Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler took what was left in his own discretionary fund in 2011 and used it to give himself a $1,400 payout, a sum that a spokesman says was for “day-to-day” expenses even though Gessler submitted no receipts to explain what those costs were.

Critics say the payout to the Republican secretary of state looks a lot like a self-given bonus, and the revelation comes as two Democratic state senators are calling for an audit of Gessler’s spending in response to reports he used state funds to attend the Republican National Convention.

The $1,400 payout occurred at the close of the state’s 2010-11 fiscal year, which ended in June 2011. Gessler submitted a request to his chief financial officer “for any remaining discretionary funds,” which swept what Gessler had not already spent from the $5,000 fund.

But unlike other requests Gessler submitted for reimbursement, there were no receipts or documentation attached to this request.

“It was to cover general costs — day-to-day meals and travel, general reimbursement — that weren’t itemized,” said Rich Coolidge, a spokesman for Gessler. “That was his (Gessler’s) first six months in office and probably still getting the hang of things. I don’t know why they weren’t itemized.”

Yet Gessler did submit numerous receipts for expenses within his first six months as secretary of state and for expenses after that point.

“I think some of those receipts simply weren’t itemized and weren’t collected,” Coolidge said. “It’s just like the legislators’ per diem: They just have to show up to work, and they get that dollar amount. It’s for expenses in office, and that’s what that discretionary fund was for.”

Gessler likely had even more in unreimbursed costs, Coolidge said.

Luis Toro, director of the left-leaning Colorado Ethics Watch, said his group had added the news of Gessler’s $1,400 payout to a request it had submitted to Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey to investigate the secretary of state for possible embezzlement of state funds. The group first asked for an investigation after learning Gessler used his discretionary fund for a trip that included a stop at a GOP lawyers meeting and the Republican National Convention.

“The discretionary fund is supposed to be used for state business, not to pay yourself a bonus,” Toro said, noting the state controller’s office recorded the payout as “other employee benefits.”

Meanwhile, state Sens. Pat Steadman, D-Denver, and Lois Tochtrop, D-Thornton, have sent a letter to the Legislative Audit Committee requesting a state audit of Gessler’s expenditures. However, state Rep. Cindy Acree, R-Aurora, the committee chairwoman, has delayed consideration of the request until December.

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